I recently attended a college graduation ceremony for a friend that was awarded a Master of Architecture.
Then, of course, there was a party after the ceremony.
And as part of the party, there was a quiz everyone could take to test their understanding of the materials in an Architecture degree and the profession the new graduate was heading into.
After getting a degree and working in the field for a time, the candidate could apply to sit for an exam for accreditation.
The question on our quiz asked how many hours of related experience the new candidate must be able to substantiate before qualifying to sit for the accreditation exam.
The multiple-choice answers ranged from 500 to 5,000 hours.
The whole point is that the architectural career demanded some real-world training and experience before even being able to sit for an exam.
In the small business world, especially in the fitness space, many people simply jump into a business with little or no experience with a belief that, if you build it, they will come.
Soon we all learn that success in any small fitness business depends on much more than believing in some simple, yet supposedly motivational, saying.
Success in the fitness space depends on the owner’s ability to grow and pivot numerous times on the path to successful business ownership.
In short, it’s often trial and error, which carries with it huge risks.
Why is our profession like this? Why do we expect to be different than other professions that require an investment in time and experience to increase our odds of survival and eventually thriving?
Part of the answer is that we get excited about our product and believe everyone is like us. While it sounds good, this is not a good foundation to stake our future on.
We need experience and while there are many ways to get it, it’s not an easy path.
Nor is it a hard path as long as we understand the path to success.
The first step is to understand the process will take some time and resign ourselves to being patient with ourselves for a period of time.
Second, we need to seek out the advice and experience of those that have gone before us and have created proven models we can learn from and follow.
Then comes the implementation period where we can benefit greatly from someone to bounce ideas off as we move down our path.
The correct answer in the quiz for the number of hours needed for the architectural candidate to prove, before sitting for the test is 3,740 hours!
Add to this the number of hours the candidate spent in school getting the Master’s Degree gives us a perspective.
Preparation and training speed up success in the long term.
This is the shortcut to business success.
Keeping a perspective like this can help as we grow, in order to grow our small business.
If you think this makes sense and would like some ideas on where to start, feel free to schedule some time with me. It’s free to you, with no strings attached! 🙂
Remember, you only get results when you take immediate action on your ideas.
